Page 53 of Healing You
Yvonne snorted, shaking her head. Of course she had. She'd spent years going over every little detail, trying to determine what could make the guy she loved so much turn his back on her. On the outside, he maybe took the blame for that accident. But on the inside? He clearly blamed her. “We're never going to work,” she whispered, not intending it to be for anyone but herself. Tonight was a terrible idea. Reigniting things with Steve was an even worse idea, it seemed. Because even if they could move on and forgive each other, it seemed like the people surrounding them couldn't. There was an ache in her chest, and Yvonne pressed her hand to her heart as though that could make the pain go away.
“Don't say that. Once Ronnie sees you two together—she'll get over it. If you and Steve can forgive each other, there's no reason your families won't follow suit.”
Yvonne snorted, rolling her eyes and swiped the stray tear from her cheek. “You've met my mom and dad, right?”
“Okay... well, maybe just the Tripp family will follow suit. And really, they're the ones that matter most, right? You've never cared about what your parents think.”
That was true, but they were still her mom and dad. She still loved them. Yvonne took a deep breath, finishing the Limoncello, its liquor sweet and delicious. She smiled, looking down at the empty cup. “Did you purposefully order me a drink that coordinated with my dress? It's a very Kyra thing to do,” she said, feeling her smile creep back to her face.
“There's no point in getting all dressed up and then drinking something that could stain your outfit,” she said, winking. “I'll get us another.”
2 5
B y the time Noah pulled into Giuseppe's parking lot, Steve was feeling immensely better. The rest of the drive was mostly silent as his headache slowly receded. Noah, for all his faults, knew when to let blissful silence just be. Unlike his twin, Callie, who heard silence and had a quest to fill it with any sort of chatter.
They were late enough that the party was already in full swing. A small, three-piece band was set up in the corner, and tables had been cleared out to make room for a dance floor. Tables of some of the best pizza on the East Coast lined the edges of the wall, along with pasta and carpaccio. Across the room was a dessert table with a three-tiered lemon meringue pie as the centerpiece. Steve stood back, admiring the gorgeous party Lydia and his brother had put together as a sort of placeholder for the delayed wedding.
At the back of the room, he caught a flash of yellow and blinked. Yvonne sat at the bar, a curve-hugging yellow dress highlighting her gorgeous body. Lean, muscled legs—runner's legs—peeked out from beneath as she sat on a barstool, her legs crossed. The dress was flipped a little higher than he would have expected from her, flashing her tight thigh. He felt his groin tighten, and his mouth went dry as he imagined kissing his way up the insides of her knee. She and Kyra were laughing, and they each tipped back a neon-yellow drink. Kyra leaned over the bar, reaching for the liquor bottle. Nick rushed over, slapping her hand out from behind the bar before pouring them another. Was she—was Yvonne tipsy?
A shadow darkened in front of him and when he blinked, Ronnie was in his face, her scowl like something out of a horror movie. “Jesus,” Steve grunted. “Who pissed on your leg?”
“What is she doing here, Steve?”
He felt his stomach tighten, weighing his options. He could play dumb, but that would only buy him an extra second. “You knew Yvonne and I were talking again. You saw us at Elsa's.”
“Yeah, talking. I didn't think it was serious enough to bring her as your date to your brother's engagement party.”
“He just walked in,” Noah interrupted. “Give the guy a break.”
Ronnie's glare softened as she moved her attention to their little brother. “Noah, this history... it was before your time. You and Callie were too young to see—”
“We weren't too young. We saw everything. We knew more than everyone gave us credit for.”
Steve felt the sigh in his chest, but refused to give in to it. “This is between me and Eve. Stay out of it, Ronnie.” He gave a quick glance at his younger brother, thankful to Noah for trying.
Ronnie jerked back, shock paling her otherwise summery tanned complexion. “Eve? She's back to Eve, is she?”
“Yeah. She is.”
“And what happens when she breaks your heart again? What happens if you two realize that you can't forgive each other? I can't keep picking up your pieces and putting them back together. Glass can only break so many times before the shards turn into dust.”
He hated that his sister—his friend—was throwing his past in his face. Even if she was doing it because she loved him. She was protective of him and all her siblings... perhaps to a fault.
“You're just going to have to let me make my mistakes, Ronnie. I remember another teenager who needed a helping hand to superglue herself back together.”
Her eyes flashed... anger, sadness, embarrassment. He wasn't sure which. “Fine. You're right,” she said, stepping back and holding her hands up in surrender. “It's your heart to break.”
Noah's hand fell to his shoulder with a light squeeze. “Well, I guess I have my answer about why that panic attack happened.”
“That's not why—”
“Therapy. You promised,” Noah interrupted as Ma came running over.
She pulled Noah into a hug. “Little Boy Blue. I've missed you.”
Steve left his mother to catch up with his youngest brother and moved toward the bar where Yvonne and Kyra were giggling. As he came up behind her, there was a strong smell of alcohol surrounding them.
The moment his hand touched her arm, she swiveled around on her barstool. He caught her around the waist, steadying her as she nearly slid off. Her nose brushed against his and her eyes lit up. Any bit of concern that may have been stirring about her getting drunk dissolved faster than a grain of sugar in steaming hot coffee. “Steve!” she said, the breath gushing across his face, and he felt the smile curve on his lips.
